Momofuku Ko is Chang’s tiny 12 seat, impossible-to-get reservations only, no menu, omakase-style restaurant created to showcase technique. Last summer, I had the chance to take three hours out of my day to have the Ko lunch menu, and if someone told me I’d be attempting to create their plates of perfection, I would have fallen over laughing.
Savoury steamed egg custards are fairly common in Asian cuisine: the Chinese have steamed eggs; the Koreans have gaeran jim; and the Japanese have chawan mushi. All three dishes are similar in preparation and taste, yet vastly different.
I’ve never eaten grits before, but I always imagined that they’d be like a corn-y sort of congee (rice porridge). Seeing as I love congee and I love corn, it would only be logical that I would love grits too. Chang’s shrimp and grits photo is amazing: the grits look creamy like a super thick soup.
Last year I was obsessed with deviled eggs. I must’ve gone through cartons and cartons of eggs perfecting my recipe. The idea, the taste, the history, and the bad reputation all lured me in. No one really talks about deviled eggs; there’s no discussion on their finer points, their crazy addictive flavour, or their preparation ease. Deviled eggs have been called old-fashioned and kitsch, but put a platter out at a party and they disappear like crazy.
slow-poached egg and hard-poached egg
Slow-poaching is truly a terrific way to poach eggs; they need a little bit of baby-sitting, but it’s well worth it. I remember the first time I was at Noodle Bar I was in awe when the chef behind the counter cracked open a seemingly raw egg and a cook one slid out.
I’ve made the slow poached eggs several times now, and usually they turn out great: soft, creamy whites with barely-cooked yolks. Yesterday though, I wasn’t paying as much attention as usual and the temperature of the water went up to 155˚.
The optimal temperature for slow-poached eggs is between 140˚ and 145˚F, but just in case you ever wanted to know what an overcooked slow-poached egg looks like, here it is. The yolk was solid-ish and not at all like the “right” way to make slow-poached eggs.
the yolk just won't yield to my toast soldier!
I poached another egg for visual comparison. As you can see, you can easily dunk your toast into one egg, but not the other. Even so, the “overcooked” poached egg tasted awesome with sweet soy sauce and some green onions.
notice the difference in yolks
Mike: You’re not eating this? I think you should have it. (It being the tiniest bit of egg ever left in the dish)
Me: What? No, I was going to put that in the sink.
Mike: Ok. More for me.
mmm...still good with soy sauce and green onions
Then Mike spooned up the minuscule amount of egg left in the bowl and popped it in his mouth.
Eggs are always a hit, overcooked or not and slow-poached are a truly delicious way to cook eggs, if you do them right or not!
slow-poached egg yolk creaminess
The Momofuku name is a registered trademark of Momofuku and David Chang. I'm just using it (fair use?) to refer to his restaurant and cookbook.
All original content and photos is © 2010 copyright & all rights reserved Stephanie Le.
momofukufor2.com is where I document the little tips and tricks I learned while cooking through the Momofuku Cookbook by David Chang and Peter Meehan.
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